Killers Behind Bars - Netflix

Editor

Killers Behind Bars is a documentary series which follows Professor
David Wilson as he takes a look into the cases of some of the country's
most infamous modern day serial killers.

Type: Documentary

Languages: English

Status: Ended

Runtime: 60 minutes

Premier: 2012-06-12

Killers Behind Bars - Hybristophilia - Netflix

Hybristophilia is a paraphilia in which sexual arousal, facilitation,
and attainment of orgasm are responsive to and contingent upon being
with a partner known to have committed an outrage, cheating, lying,
known infidelities, or crime—such as rape, murder, or armed robbery. The
term is derived from the Greek word ὑβρίζειν hubrizein, meaning “to
commit an outrage against someone” (ultimately derived from ὕβρις hubris
“hubris”), and philo, meaning “having a strong affinity/preference for”.
In popular culture, this phenomenon is also known as “Bonnie and Clyde
Syndrome”. Many high-profile criminals, particularly those who have
committed atrocious crimes, receive “fan mail” in prison that is
sometimes amorous or sexual, presumably as a result of this phenomenon.
In some cases, admirers of these criminals have gone on to marry the
object of their affections in prison. Hybristophilia is accepted as
potentially lethal, among other such paraphilias including, but not
being limited to, asphyxiophilia, autassassinophilia, biastophilia, and
chremastistophilia.

Killers Behind Bars - Causes - Netflix

The reason why some people do this is unknown, but some speculations
have been offered. For instance, Katherine Ramsland, who is a professor
of forensic psychology at DeSales University mentions that some of the
women in particular who have married or dated male serial killers have
offered the following reasons: “Some believe they can change a man as
cruel and powerful as a serial killer.” “Others 'see' the little boy
that the killer once was and seek to nurture him.” “A few hoped to share
in the media spotlight or get a book or movie deal.” “Then there's the
notion of the 'perfect boyfriend'. She knows where he is at all times
and she knows he's thinking about her. While she can claim that someone
loves her, she does not have to endure the day-to-day issues involved in
most relationships. There’s no laundry to do, no cooking for him, and no
accountability to him. She can keep the fantasy charged up for a long
time.” Others offered reasons along the lines of: “Some mental health
experts have compared infatuation with killers to extreme forms of
fanaticism. They view such women as insecure females who cannot find
love in normal ways or as 'love-avoidant' females who seek romantic
relationships that cannot be consummated.” From a perspective focusing
on male serial killers attracting female partners, Leon F. Seltzer
(psychologist), has offered explanations based on evolutionary
psychology. Serial killers, in his view, are cases of alpha males that
tend to attract women. This is because such males were good at
protecting women and their offspring in our evolutionary history. Women
nowadays may consciously realize that it is unwise to date a serial
killer, but they are nevertheless attracted to them, as he notes “as a
therapist I've encountered many women who bemoaned their vulnerability
toward dominant men who, consciously, they recognized were all wrong for
them”. As evidence of women's fantasy preference for dominant men, he
refers to the book A Billion Wicked Thoughts: What the World's Largest
Experiment Reveals about Human Desire by Ogi Ogas and Sai Gaddam.
Seltzer discusses Ogas and Gaddam's argument that this fantasy is the
dominant plot of most erotic/romantic books and movies written for women
but the fantasy always holds that this male dominance is conditional,
“it doesn't really represent the man's innermost reality”.